A Tired Tale
by littlemon
Summary: Megumi, a narcoleptic kunoichi and jinchuriki, is fed up with the neglect from her village and leaves. Forming an unlikely group with two other jinchuriki, they begin a new life in Konoha.
1. Chapter 1

Megumi stood outside the gates of Iwagakure staring at the terrain of the rock country. She was leaving. Her only problem was she didn't feel like walking to her unknown destination. Unlike the other shinobi of her country, she's quite lazy and only moves when absolutely necessary.

She sighed deeply at the thought of travel and started walking. Of course, her walking is slow and leisurely so it takes forever to get anywhere. She had a small backpack with her containing only her essentials: a few changes of clothes, toiletries, ninja equipment, and her cookbook.

Not even a few hours into her travels, she felt a large figure fly right past her at a lighting fast pace. The force of the wind that came after nearly knocked her flat on her face. Groaning and rubbing her newly grazed knee, Megumi heard someone talking to her.

"Oh, sorry about that! We didn't see you there," The voice came from a young male. Megumi looked up in the direction of the voice. What she thought to be one large figure turned out to be two separate figures, a boy and a girl. The boy was giving Megumi a toothy grin while the girl looked down at Megumi with lidded un-amused eyes. "What's your name?"

"Um," Megumi got up and brushed the dirt off of her knees. "I'm Megumi Shioya of Iwagakure."

"Iwa?" The boy's eyes lit up. "We were just heading there! We heard that there was a Jinchuriki there. Would you happen to know where they are?"

A junchuriki. The human vessel for one of the nine tailed beasts. Sealed into a human to keep their powers at bay, these humans can posses a tremendous amount of power if they know how to control the beasts inside of them.

"May I ask who you two are first?" Megumi asked politely.

"I'm Reiji Utagawa and this is my companion Toshiko Dan," Reiji replied with another grin. "We're looking for a jinchuriki like us to recruit and form a team wi—" Reiji was cut short after getting punched in the head by Toshiko.

"You idiot," She sighed. "Do not give away our identities to random passersby. You know there are individuals looking for the jinchuriki to extract the tailed beasts."

"Wait, when you say 'like us' do you mean you're also jinchuriki?" Megumi asked sounding hopeful.

"Since Reiji already spilled our secret, yes," Toshiko replied. "Would you happen to know where the Iwa Jinchuriki resides?"

"Well, um," Megumi scratched the back of her head and laughed nervously. "That would be me."

"No way! We managed to find them before even getting to Iwa! This is great!" Reiji beamed.

"What are you doing outside of the village alone? You can't be on a mission by yourself at the speed you were going," Toshiko pointed out, seeming suspicious of Megumi's behavior. Megumi slumped a little.

Taking a deep breath, Megumi began telling her fellow Jinchuriki about her life. How no one ever wanted her around, how they thought she was useless because of her sluggish nature and lack of motivation, and how her family never accepted her as a true member of the family. Megumi finally had enough of the neglect and left home with no intention of returning. Meeting two others like her was exactly what she needed to help her start her new life.

"Your whole village neglected you? Harsh," Reiji crossed his arms and tilted his head with a sympathetic expression. Though he and Toshiko went through similar situations in their own villages, neither of them had parents. Hearing Megumi talk about her parents being alive and well but still neglecting her was saddening. "You should join us."

"Really? You'll accept me?" Megumi's eyes were bright and hopeful. The two shinobi nodded.

Their adventure begins.

The three shinobi began a quest for Konoha. They heard that another Jinchuriki lived there and wanted to know if the village would accept them since their other villages didn't.

On their travels, the shinobi talked amongst themselves about their tailed beasts. Megumi is host to the Six-Tailed Slug, Reiji is the host to the Seven-Tailed Horned Beetle, and Toshiko is the host to the Two-Tailed Monster Cat. Each of them are well acquainted with their demons and can even converse with them. The demons don't always cooperate with the children, however.

As they kept walking, Megumi finally got a good look at the two jinchuriki, as well. The boy, Reiji, had spiked black hair keeping his bangs out of his face with a red headband sporting the Waterfall village sign. His clothes were simple, loose black pants, a tight fitting fishnet t-shirt, a red vest-like shirt overtop that was left open, and a black sash over his waist. Toshiko, the girl, was wearing an extremely tight black jumpsuit that covered her entire body, stopping at the neck, wrists, and ankles, with a small pair of shorts overtop with a couple belts resting loosely on her hips. She had a crop top jacket covering her upper body, the sleeves stopping at her elbows. Her hair was platinum blond, almost white, and it rested below her shoulders. Her right eye is yellow and her left eye is green.

Megumi was also wearing a simple getup, a fishnet tube top, covering her chest and abdomen, small light grey cargo shorts, and a tiny poncho of the same colour. The poncho had an elastic band so it could be placed snugly on her arms, keeping her shoulders and collarbone bare, and only covered her chest. Her hair was a pale minty green. Bangs covered her forehead but the rest of her hair was kept in a tight bun to keep it out of the way. Her ninja headband was used as a bow for her hair, the metal plate placed at the back of her head while the black ribbon made a cute bow at the top of her head.

Megumi began feeling drowsy. Before she knew it, she was on the ground snoring.

"Whoa, Megumi!" Reiji stopped and ran over to her. "Hey, come on, snap out of it. Wake up. What's going on? Genjutsu?"

Megumi's eyes opened. "Oh god, did I fall asleep again? Sorry…" She rubbed her eyes and yawned.

"Does this happen often with you?" Toshiko raised an eyebrow.

"Yeah, actually…I, uh…I have narcolepsy," Megumi laughed nervously.

"Oh dear," Toshiko pinched the bridge of her nose. "That's not exactly an amazing quality for a ninja to have. You could fall asleep at any moment and blow your cover on missions."

"Another reason why I was never useful to anyone back home," Megumi hugged her knees close to her chest. "I'd understand if you guys don't want me on your team. There's a reason they called me the Useless Nin of Iwa."

Toshiko chuckled. Megumi amused her, an interesting character for sure. "Meh, I think we'll keep you," Toshiko shrugged with a smirk. "It's not everyday three jinchuriki band together like us."

Megumi smiled at how accepted she was in the group despite all of her flaws. She teared up a little, overwhelmed.

"Here we are!" Reiji outstretched his arms as they approached the gates of Konoha. It took a few days and countless hours of Reiji carrying the narcoleptic Megumi on his back but they finally made it. The only question now: will they be accepted?

"State your business," A Konoha ninja stopped them at the gate.

"We are three Genin level shinobi rejected by our respective villages and would like to ask the Hokage if we can be accepted into Konoha, sir," Toshiko replied respectfully to the ninja questioning them. The ninja pondered Toshiko's request and turned to his partner for their opinion. They escorted the three jinchuriki to the Hokage's office, keeping sharp eyes, making sure they did nothing suspicious.

"What's wrong with your companion?" One of the ninja asked as he stared at Megumi, who was asleep on Reiji's back.

"She's sleeping, she's very tried from our journey here," Toshiko replied emotionlessly. They arrived at the Hokage's office and entered the building single file.

"Hokage-sama," The two ninja bowed. They explained what the jinchuriki had explained to them earlier. The Hokage nodded slowly and stroked his chin.

"Hmmm," He pondered.

"Hokage-sama, if I may interrupt your thoughts," Toshiko interrupted. "I would like to explain the reason behind our rejections from the cloud, waterfall, and rock villages."

"Go on," The Hokage leaned forward slightly as he waited for Toshiko's explanation.

"You see, Hokage-sama, all three of us have tailed beasts residing within us. We are feared and neglected in our villages. We have come here to Konoha to seek refuge. In return for this refuge, we will happily fight for this village, protecting it by any means, if you will have us," The two shinobi that escorted the jinchuriki to the office are now armed and ready to attack after learning how dangerous these three shinobi really are. "We can control our tailed beasts but we understand if you are uncertain or do not trust us."

"Hokage-sama, are you really going to let three more jinchuriki into the village?! We already have Naruto to worry about!" One of the ninja stated firmly.

Reiji began feeling uneasy. He turned to Toshiko, who still kept her cool demeanor despite the two ninja who are very ready to attack at any moment. Megumi was still asleep on his back so he kept his guard up in case the ninja tried attacking her.

"This is quite interesting," The Hokage chuckled to himself. "We can always use more capable shinobi. I accept your offer."

Toshiko smiled. "Thank you Hokage-sama," She and Reiji bowed respectfully.

"Of course it will take some time to get all of the paperwork sorted out. I do believe we have some vacant housing in one of the apartments close to here. If you three can find some odd jobs in the meantime, it would help to keep you busy while we make you official Konoha shinobi," The Hokage explained.


	2. Chapter 2

The three of them were placed in separate housing in the same apartment close to the marketplace. Though separate, Toshiko and Megumi's housing were right next to each other and Reiji was across the hall. They were small apartments, only able to house one or two people comfortably but it was perfect for them. They were also able to find odd jobs to keep themselves busy and earn some money while being suspended as ninja for the time being, until the paperwork was sorted out. It could take some time.

Toshiko managed to find work at the local flower shop, Reiji started working at a weapon shop, and Megumi worked in a tiny general store. Though the other two weren't so keen on their new jobs, Megumi liked the minimal work and constant supply of snacks and drinks she occasionally takes.

Of course, falling asleep on the job was a big issue for her, but having explained the issue to her boss and co-workers beforehand helped keep her from getting fired on the assumption she's a lazy worker—which she it—but she still tried, nonetheless.

One day, while stocking the shelves, Megumi noticed someone come into the store. "Welcome!" She greeted them sweetly. She noticed it was Reiji who came in with a few new faces. "Hi, Reiji, are these some new friends of yours?"

"Yeah, meet Kiba, Shikamaru, and Choji," Reiji pointed to each one as he introduced them. "Guys, this is my friend Megumi."

"It's nice to meet you all," Megumi kept her sweet smile and tilted her head slightly. "If you need any help in the store just let me know." She continued to stock shelves as the boys browsed the store.

"Man, she's cute," Kiba said with a toothy smile, elbowing Reiji. "She your girlfriend?"

"Nah, we're just friends," Reiji nudged Kiba back.

"Women are troublesome," Shikamaru sighed. Choji chuckled as he ate from the bag of chips he had before coming into the store. Shikamaru heard snoring from the other aisle and went to check what it was. Megumi was sleeping while standing up. "Does your friend usually do this?"

Reiji peeked over the aisle to see what Shikamaru was talking about and found Megumi sleeping while Shikamaru poked her in the face, gaining no response. He laughed and walked over to Megumi, picking her up. "I think it's time she went home," He said. He let her co-worker know he was taking her home and the boys walked out of the store. "Let's go to my house."

Megumi woke to laughter. She found herself on a couch with the 4 boys from earlier sitting on the floor telling stories, laughing, and eating goodies. She noticed it was late afternoon and decided to cook come food. "Why don't you boys stay for dinner?" Megumi offered, walking over to Reiji's fridge to see what she could make.

"Oh man, Gumi is an amazing cook! I tried her cooking a few days ago and it's great! You guys should totally stay." Reiji beamed, excited that Megumi was offering to cook.

"I'm in," Kiba smiled. "Need any help, Megumi?" Kiba got up and walked over to the kitchen.

"That would be great, thanks, Kiba," Megumi noticed the dog on Kiba's shoulder. "Oh! What an adorable puppy! What's his name?" She began scratching the puppy's head, gaining happy sounds from the little guy.

"His name is Akamaru. He's my best buddy," Kiba smiled and scratched behind Akamaru's ear. "So, what do you want me to help with?"

"Oh right, could you chop these veggies while I set up a few other things?" Megumi placed some veggies on the table for Kiba to chop. He agreed and got to work while Megumi started making some rice and bbq pork, per Choji's request. The boys gathered at the table once Megumi and Kiba finished making the food. They thought it was amazing and Choji almost ate everything, leaving no leftovers.

"Your friends seem nice," Megumi stated while washing some dishes. The boys had left for home a few minutes earlier. "It's nice to actually have people enjoy my company."

"They're pretty cool. I'm glad you like Konoha so far, Gumi. I know how nervous you were about coming here," Reiji helped Megumi with the dishes.

"Yeah," Megumi smiled to herself. "Maybe I'll like it here."

A couple weeks later, the Hokage told the three jinchuriki that they will be able to become Konoha shinobi before the next chunin exam, which was coming up very shortly, and would be able to participate. While Toshiko and Reiji excitedly quit their jobs to train, Megumi kept her job for the time being.

As she was walking home from work one day with a bag of snacks, she turned down an ally that was between a hotel and the apartment building across from her own. A cat jumped out of a trashcan and startled her. "Oh dear!" She gasped, thinking it was someone trying to ambush her. She sighed with relief when she noticed it was only a cat and kept walking down the ally.

Megumi suddenly started to feel her muscles getting weaker. "Oh no," Her eyes widened. She could feel her knees buckle and she began falling to the ground. "Oh no, not now." THUD. She hit the ground, her bag of snacks scattered ever so slightly, and unable to move her own body. "This is not good…heellpppp…heeellllppppp!" She began to cry out pathetic little yelps of desperation to try getting someone's attention. Her speech began to slur and she thought no one would be able to hear her.

Her pathetic cried were not in vein, as she felt someone grab the back of her shirt and lift her face off the ground. Since she couldn't move her neck muscles she veered her eyes off to the side to try getting a look at the individual holding her up. It was a young man wearing all black and had peculiar purple face paint. Judging by his headband, he's from Sunagakure.

"Thank you, kind sir," Megumi managed to utter out. The young man smirked at her pathetic state.

"Do you need a medic?" He asked her with a hint of amusement.

"No…I'm just going through an episode of cataplexy," Megumi replied with a slight lisp. "If you wouldn't mind, would you please take me to my apartment just across the street?"

The young man sighed heavily as he ran a hand down his face but agreed to help her. Once Megumi told him where she lived, what story, and what room number, he was able to take her to her apartment. "So," The young man started as he set Megumi down on her couch. "What is this cata-whatever you're going through?"

"Have you ever heard of narcolepsy?" Megumi asked.

"Yeah, you fall asleep randomly," The young man replied.

"This is a side effect of having narcolepsy. Sudden emotional reactions can cause your muscles to cease functioning for a short period of time. It ranges from feeling your muscles weaken to completely shutting down," Megumi explained, feeling her muscles starting to work again. "In my case, I was startled by a cat and my muscles completely shut down in the ally." The young man chuckled at Megumi's misfortune.

Megumi turned to him. "What's your name?"

"Kankuro," The young man replied bluntly. "And you?"

"Megumi Shioya. It's nice to meet you, Kankuro," Megumi smiled a goofy smile. Kankuro said nothing. He merely shrugged and started for the door. "Wait, wait! I should reward you!" With her muscles slowly going back to normal, Megumi was able to get up and walk to her kitchen counter. There, she found her wallet and took out a generous amount of money and gave it to Kankuro.

"I can't accept that," Kankuro shook his head at Megumi stumbled toward him and a handful of money.

"Oh, but you can," Megumi smiled, nearly falling into Kankuro and pushing the handful on money onto his chest, urging him to take it. "I could have been stuck in that ally for who knows how long. You did me a big favour and I want you to know how grateful I am. Go buy yourself some nice things."

"Fine," Kankuro sighed and took the money, putting it into his pocket for the time being. "Don't think I'll be doing any more favours for you." With that, Kankuro walked out of the apartment.

Almost immediately after Kankuro left, Megumi lost her balance and fell to the floor, asleep.

Reiji found Megumi an hour later on the floor. He noticed her when he saw the door to her apartment was wide open. "Megumi?" Reiji shook her gently and her eyes opened. "Hey sleepy head, what are you doing on the floor?"

"Oh, I must have fallen asleep before getting somewhere more comfortable," Megumi laughed at herself. "I'm hungry, do you want to get something to eat?"

The duo left the apartment and began searching for a place to eat. They found a quaint ramen place called Ichiraku Ramen and ordered their food. "Man, I haven't had ramen in ages! I can't wait!" Reiji beamed. "How was work today, Megumi?"

"It was good, nice and quiet as usual. Sometimes I wish I could just work a tiny job like that instead of being a ninja," Megumi laughed quietly.

"Why did you decide to become a ninja, then?" Reiji raised an eyebrow. "You're constantly falling asleep and never feel like doing any real work a shinobi has to do everyday on the job."

"Aha, yeah…" Megumi scratched the back of her head. "Well, it wasn't exactly my choice. Since I have the six-tails inside of me my village wanted me to become a weapon. It didn't really work out for them since I never did anything so they just…gave up, I guess. I want to do something meaningful with my life, though. So, until I find something else, being a regular ninja is fine with me."

Reiji smiled. He was happy to know she's searching for a goal but he's never actually seen Megumi fight. He hopes to see her in action during the Chunin exams soon. Toshiko, on the other hand, can fight and it scares Reiji how strong she it. He shivered at the thought and changed the subject. "Do you think we'll fit in here? In Konoha, I mean."

"Hmm," Megumi pondered…then nodded off. "Zzzz."

"Gumi wake up," Reiji nudged her.

"I didn't do it!" Megumi's head jerked up. "Ah, sorry. I think we'll fit in just fine, Reiji. Everyone in this village seems so unique and interesting, no one personality seems to be rejected. You've already made such good friends here."

"Hey, I haven't seen you two around before," A high and slightly raspy voice was heard from behind the two ninja. They turned around to see a young blond boy wearing an orange jumpsuit. "My name is Naruto Uzumaki! Who are you guys?"

"I'm Megumi Shioya," Megumi smiled sweetly at the young boy. "This is my good friend Reiji Utagawa. We just moved her from neighboring countries."

"Really? That's so cool! Are you gonna be in the Chunin exam, too?" Naruto asked as he sat beside Megumi.

"We sure are. We have to prove to Lord Hokage that we are capable ninja and are able to protect the village as best we can!" Megumi exclaimed. Her and Naruto talked for quite a while after. Reiji wasn't enjoying Naruto's annoying company and fled the scene as soon as he was able. Megumi didn't seem to notice since she kept talking to Naruto an hour or so after Reiji left.

The next morning, Megumi was at work stocking shelves. She yawned before hearing the tiny bell on the door ring, indicating a customer had come into the store.

"Welcome!" Megumi greeted them enthusiastically. She noticed the customer as the young man from yesterday. "Oh! Hello, Kankuro!"

"Oh, it's you," Kankuro stated with slight interest. "Not a ragdoll anymore, I see."

"Nope, completely mobile once again," Megumi wiggled her arms around as she said this. "Can I help you with anything?"

"No," Kankuro walked passed Megumi and began shopping on his own.

"Oh, well, let me know…if…" Megumi trailed off. Kankuro noticed how she stopped talking in the middle of a sentence and turned to face her. She was still stacking shelves…oddly. He got a closer look at her and realized she was asleep. He gave her a rough shake and she woke up with a snort. "Hello sir, how can I help you?"

"You fell asleep," Kankuro pointed out. "Don't do that while you're working."

The tiny bell at the door rang again and Reiji came into the store with Kiba tailing behind. "Megumi! What kind of snacks do you have here? I ran out at home!" Reiji shouted. Kankuro made a face of disgust and walked away to continue his shopping. "What's with the grump?"

"That's the guy I was telling you about yesterday," Megumi smiled. Reiji looked at him suspiciously.

"He didn't do anything to you, did he?" Reiji's tone became serious. "Did he touch you?"

Megumi blinked. She was not amused with the fact that that's where his mind went. She decided to give him a smart-ass answer, "Well, I mean, he would have had to touch me to carry me home. He left after I gave him and thank you gift," She replied.

"That's not what I—never mind," Reiji sighed and walked passed Megumi to get to Kankuro. "Hey buddy, I hope you didn't do anything to Megumi." Kankuro looked unamused with Reiji's presence and chose to ignore him. Reiji didn't like this and gave Kankuro a shove. "I'm talking to you."

"I have no business with you, now beat it," Kankuro's words were cold. Reiji didn't like his attitude and was ready to punch him in the face but Megumi got between them and stopped the fight before it began.

"No fighting in my store please," Megumi pleaded. "I don't wanna get fired. I actually like working here."

"Tch, whatever," Reiji scoffed. "I'll come back later. See you around Megumi. What your back around that guy…I don't trust him." Megumi turned back to Kankuro once Reiji left the store.

"I'm sorry he bothered you," She apologized. "I can help you at the till if you're ready." Kankuro shrugged as he followed Megumi to the counter.

"Wasn't your fault, I guess," Kankuro placed his snacks on the counter and paid Megumi.

"Have a nice day, Kankuro," Megumi smiled. Kankuro hardly reacted. He took his things with a small thanks and left. Megumi sighed, "It's so hard to make friends."

"Why did Reiji get so pissed off at that guy?" Kiba asked. He walked over to the till to chat with Megumi. "Sounds like a serious grudge."

"I have no idea what his deal is," Megumi sighed heavily, letting her head fall on the counter. "He should be happy that guy was nice enough to help me."

"What happened?"

"I have narcolepsy. A side affect is this thing called cataplexy. You basically lose control of your muscles when startled, or cry, or laugh," Megumi explained. "A cat scared me in the ally on my way home and my muscles failed. Kankuro helped me to my house."

"You can't laugh or cry without being a ragdoll? That's rough," Kiba's expression was sympathetic.

"It's more like when I have intense feelings of emotion. I can laugh without it being an issue most of the time. It's when I laugh really hard. Don't worry," Megumi reassured him.

"Hey, I was going to take Akamaru for a walk. Wanna join us?" Kiba offered with a smile. Megumi nodded in response and told her co-worker she was getting off a little early. Maybe it wasn't so hard to make friends after all.


	3. Chapter 3

"So, I hear you've had a few encounters with a Suna shinobi," Toshiko stated as she gave Megumi a cup of tea. "I suppose that means the Chunin exams are sooner than we thought."

"Maybe we can finally do ninja stuff now," Megumi said sleepily, blowing on her tea to cool it down. After putting an excessive amount of sugar into her tea she looked up at Toshiko. "Do we have any milk?"

"I just ran out. Maybe ask the neighbor if they have any they can spare," Toshiko suggested. Megumi groaned and reluctantly got up. She knocked on the neighbor's door and waited for a response.

A young man answered the door. His hair was brown and neatly cut. He wore simple clothing, a black t-shirt and white shorts but no shoes. He was most likely not planning on going outside anytime soon. "Can I help you?" He asked, scratching the stubble on his face.

"Sorry to bother you, sir," Megumi yawned. "I live next door, would you happen to have any milk to spare?"

"Hold on," He closed the door. Megumi heard the faint sound of rummaging and the door swung open again. The man gave Megumi a full 2lt jug of milk. "Keep the whole thing."

"Oh, are you sure? Isn't this all of your milk?" Megumi asked, feeling guilty about taking it.

"No, I have at least 5 more jugs. Don't worry about it," He closed the door quietly leaving Megumi in the hall with a large jug of milk in her arms.

"Thank you mysterious milk ninja," Megumi said quietly before returning to her apartment.

* * *

A few days before the Chunin exams, Megumi, Toshiko, and Reiji were finally registered as Konoha shinobi and were assigned a Jonin sensei, Anko Mitarashi, for a short time. Their training began immediately, much to Megumi's protest.

"Alright you maggots! Keep training!" Anko yelled as she threw kunai at Megumi to keep her moving.

"Toshiko! Anko is trying to kill meeee!" Megumi cried as she ran to Toshiko for support.

"You can do better than that, Sleepy Ninja!" Anko threw more kunai at Megumi. "I want to see you run around this whole field until you throw up!"

"Make it stoooppp!" Megumi cried.

Toshiko and Reiji dragged Megumi down the street toward their apartment building, supporting her limp body as best they could. "I can't feel my everything," Megumi mumbled. "Am I dead? Is this what death feels like?"

"To be honest, I'm surprised you didn't fall asleep," Toshiko smirked. "We're almost home. Just another block."

As they walked, they noticed a lot of shinobi from different countries. Grass, Waterfall, Sand, Sound, Rain, the list goes on. All here for the Chunin exams, they were sure.

The three ninja all went into Megumi's apartment and got confortable in her living room, telling each other stories, watching TV shows, eating snacks and drinking tea, having a great time bonding. Toshiko told the other two about her family and how her parents were killed. A tragic story but it was one that helped bring everyone closer now that they have their own little family together as a three-man squad. Three outcasts from three different countries banded together because of one thing they all had in common: The Tailed Beasts.

"So, Megumi," Toshiko started as she shifted on the couch to get comfortable. "Reiji and I have no idea what you can do in battle. What are you capable of?"

"Well," Megumi smiled. She did a couple hand signs and placed her hands out in front of her. A small mirror make of crystal appeared in her hands. The mirror had a pink hue and a beautiful faint glow. "I can use crystal release jutsu. Over the years I learned how to make these mirrors. They can let me talk to my tailed beast face to face easily. They can do a lot of other things but this is what I use it for most since I don't often fight."

The other two ninja gazed into the tiny mirror and saw a tiny six-tailed slug inside waving at them. "Hello friends of Megumi," It said. "I am Saiken."

"This is so cool," Reiji stared at the tiny mirror in awe. "Can you make these mirrors bigger?"

"Mhm," Megumi nodded.

"Wow, I hope I get to fight you just so I know how these mirrors work!" Reiji smiled at Megumi. She smiled back.

* * *

Today was the day. The day the chunin exams start. Many ninja were already inside of the room as Megumi, Reiji, and Toshiko made their way in. They took their seats as the written test was about to start.

"Okay, writing a test. Shouldn't be too hard, I've passed tests before," Megumi smiled to herself. "Okay, first question…" Before she could even read the first few words on the test she nodded off to sleep. She didn't wake up until the very end of the test when everyone moved on to the next round.

"Megumi, you idiot!" Toshiko punched Megumi in the head. "You could have gotten us disqualified if the test results weren't useless!"

"Ahk! I didn't do it!" Megumi responded as she woke up and rubbed her head. Toshiko sighed heavily as they walked to the next stage of the exam: The Forest of Death.

"Oh dear. Oh no. There is no way you're making me go in there," Megumi stated as they walked closer to the forest. "Nuh uh, finish this test on your own, I'm out."

"Not so fast," Toshiko grabbed the collar of Megumi's shirt and dragged her back. "You're not going anywhere. Not after the stunt you pulled during the first test. I'm going to make sure you don't ruin my chances of passing. We're doing this as a team."

"Toshiko is right, Megumi," Reiji added. "We have to do this as a team or we'll never pass." Megumi sighed heavily as they stood at the gates they were assigned. She groaned at the test began and sprinted inside of the forest.

"I never asked for this!"

* * *

Megumi was alone in the middle of a small opening in the trees, seemingly unaware of her surroundings. "Toshiko?" She called out in a worried tone. "Reiji? Where are you?"

Shadowy ninja were hiding in the trees above Megumi. "Easy target," They snickered and all lunged for her. Just before they were able to get to her, a crystal mirror appeared in front of them and were sucked into it. "Let us out! Hey! Hey, let us out!" Megumi turned to them and smiled.

"Give me your scroll and I've let you live," She said as she tapped on the mirror. They refused to give Megumi the scroll. "I really didn't want to do this but…Saiken, would you please kill them?" The ninja turned around to see a large six-tailed slug towering over them. They screamed in terror and then there was silence. A heaven scroll was thrown out of the mirror and rolled its way to Megumi's feet. "Thank you, Saiken." Megumi smiled as the mirror poofed away.

"Wow, way to go, Gumi!" Reiji smiled at Megumi as he jumped down from a nearby tree. "You handled yourself well, I'm glad we decided to let you handle getting the scroll!"

"Thanks, Reiji. Carry me," Megumi fell onto Reiji. "So sleepy."

"Gumi, no! Don't fall asleep! Gumi, please! I don't want to carry you!" Reiji pleased. Megumi fell asleep anyway and Reiji had to carry her to the building.

Megumi woke up and found that the second half of the chunin exam was over. Things were running smoothly for them. No injuries and no disqualifications. She looked around and saw some familiar faces. Naruto energetically waved at her and she waved back just as energetically. "I'm so glad you made it, Megumi!" Naruto smiled as the proctor began to speak. He informed everyone that too many of them had passed the second test and they needed to go though a preliminary exam before continuing.

The sleepy ninja and her team watched as everyone had a turn to fight each other. It wasn't until Hinata and Neji's battle that Reiji spoke, "Man, Neji is tough. I'd hate to go up against someone like that," He crossed his arms, "Or even that sand kid." Megumi nodded in agreement, hugging her arms close.

"Hey you," Kankuro called out to Naruto. "How come you're all by yourself? Why aren't you hangin' with your buddies?"

"Huh? What's it to you?" Naruto sneered.

"So, tell me something about this guy Neji. I get the feeling we didn't get to see the full extent of his powers in the last fight, did we? So what's his story?" Kankuro kept a cool demeanor as he talked to Naruto. Megumi was keeping an eye on the conversation. She wasn't too far away so eavesdropping wasn't so hard, she was curious to know why Kankuro came over to their side of the arena just to talk to Naruto.

"I'm gonna pulverize him! That's his story!" Naruto exclaimed, punching the air with his fist.

"Okaayyy, but that's not quite what I meant," Kankuro paused for a moment before continuing. "You know, you seem like a nice guy. I like you." At this point Megumi could tell he was trying to get information from Naruto.

"Well, don't take this the wrong way, but I don't like you," Naruto sneered again. Megumi couldn't help but laugh; both Kankuro and Naruto could hear her and turned to face her.

"What's so funny, ragdoll?" Kankuro scoffed.

"Rude," Megumi mumbled, a bit annoyed with the pet name.

"Hey! Don't talk to Megumi like that. Unlike you, I actually like her!" Naruto huffed in the background. Kankuro ignored him and kept staring at Megumi, waiting for an answer.

"I don't feel like gracing you with an answer," Megumi shrugged with a smile. There was a slight smile on Kankuro's face.

"So, we're playing this game?" His smile grew, a glint of amusement in his eyes.

"I don't see what you mean," Megumi giggled faintly but their little banter was cut short as Kankuro's name came up on the monitor.

The next match: Kankuro vs. Tsurugi Misumi

"Heh, watch and learn." Kankuro smirked.

"Oh sorry, I forgot my pen." Megumi shrugged playfully. Kankuro jumped down to the arena. When the battle began, Kankuro took the thing wrapped in bandages off of his back.

Misumi used a jutsu that made him like a rubber man, or so Megumi thought. He wrapped his arms and legs around Kankuro to prevent him from moving. "If you surrender then I'll spare your life." Said Misumi. Kankuro didn't say anything. Misumi had an arm around Kankuro's neck and he was practically choking him. There was a loud cracking sound. Megumi gasped. Misumi had snapped Kankuro's neck. "Tch, what a fool." Misumi sighed. Something strange happened. It looked as if sand was falling from Kankuro's face.

His head spun around, looking totally different. "Now it's my turn, so say good-bye." He said in a creepy voice. That wasn't Kankuro. It was his puppet, Crow. The real Kankuro came out of the thing wrapped in bandages.

"Puppet Master," Megumi whispered. Kankuro made his puppet crush Misumi. He smirked as he screamed in pain.

The battle was over as quickly as it started.

"So, what did you think? Impressed?" Kankuro walked back up the stairs with his hands in his pockets.

"Huh? What? Oh, sorry, I blinked and it was over. Do it again," Megumi stuck her tongue out and laughed.

"I wouldn't be laughing if I were you, ragdoll," Kankuro pointed to the screen showing the next match. Megumi held her breath as she turned around and read the names for the next challenge: Megumi Shioya and Reiji Utagawa.

"Nooo…" She whimpered quietly. "Why Reiji? Why not anyone else?" She turned to Reiji, who stood on the opposite end of the arena, and whimpered again. She knew how fast he could be and knew he had been training as much as he could everyday, unlike Megumi, who did no training at all.

"Hey," Naruto nudged her with a reassuring smile. "Don't worry. You can do this!" Megumi smiled at Naruto and gave him a nod before jumping down to the arena.

"You ready, Gumi? I'm not going to go easy on you," Reiji smirked with confidence.

"I know," Megumi sighed and got into a fighting stance. "Let's get this over with."

The match started. Reiji immediately ran at Megumi with speed she hadn't seen since they first met. Before she knew it he was right in front of her and tried to get a punch in. Megumi reacted surprisingly fast, ducking out of the way and sweeping her leg under Reiji so he'd lose his footing.

This didn't faze Reiji. He jumped into the air and sprouted bug-like wings, keeping him airborne. Everyone in the room started talking amongst themselves about Reiji's wings. This was also news to Megumi, since she never actually trained with him before the Chunin exam and there was never a time for his wings to be useful until now. "Surprised?" Reiji asked with a chuckle. "You shouldn't be, you of all people should know why I can fly." Megumi did know the reason; it was because of his tailed beast. She sighed and did some hand signs.

"Well, if you're not going to coming back down to me," She vanished into the ground. There was a silence that shrouded the room for a moment as everyone wondered where Megumi went. A large mirror suddenly appeared above Reiji, "I'll just have to come to you!" Megumi came out of the mirror and crashed into Reiji, causing both of them to fall to the ground. Before Reiji could react, Megumi gripped his wings, placed a foot on his back, and began to pull.

"AHK! No! Not my wings!" Reiji cried.

"Give up or the wings come off!" Megumi yelled, pulling even harder.

"Okay! I give up!" There were visible tears on Reiji's face. Megumi let go of his wings and helped him up. "You're a lot more cruel than I thought."

"Sorry, Reiji," Megumi gave him a hug. "Goes to show I'm not completely useless, aha."

They walked over to Toshiko, who was completely dumbfounded, waiting for them at the bottom of the stairs. She still couldn't believe that Megumi was able to subdue Reiji. The little narcoleptic ninja who is usually too lazy to even train with the other two was able to beat the one on her own team who trained the most. Though, at the same time, Toshiko could tell Reiji was being cocky and thought Megumi would be an easy fight. "I'm really proud of you for being able to pull that off, Megumi," Toshiko smiled as they walked back up the stairs.

"Wow, Megumi! That was amazing!" Naruto exclaimed as her and Reiji came up the stairs. "Those mirrors are so cool, how did you learn to do that? Can you teach me?"

"I'd love to teach you but it's a kekkei genkai, a bloodline trait," Megumi scratched the back of her head.

"That explains it," Kankuro laughed to himself. Megumi turned to face him with a small scowl and narrowed eyes. "If you didn't have that kekkei genkai you'd be toast."

"Oh yeah?" Megumi poked him in the chest with her finger. "How about I battle you next time? Then let's see how…you…like it…" Megumi started dozing off and fell into Kankuro.

"Whoa, hey!" Kankuro caught her. Hearing a slight snore from Megumi made him laugh under his breath before handing her over to Toshiko. "I'm sure you can take care of this."

The next battle was Toshiko's. Megumi kept going in and out of sleep during the first bit of her battle. She sat down on the floor and leaned her head against the barred railing so she wouldn't fall over after falling asleep. She tried so hard to stay awake but still ended up dozing off anyway.

It would be a month before going up against their next opponents. Toshiko wanted to do some training on her own to better enhance her ability to control her tailed beast and Reiji thought it would be a good idea to train with Anko one-on-one for a while leaving Megumi to fend for herself. She found herself hanging out with Naruto since no one else wanted to be around her.

"Why so glum, Megumi?" Naruto asked as they sat together at Ichiraku ramen. "Still upset about that Kankuro guy calling you a ragdoll?"

"No, that's not it. Everyone is off training and left me behind," Megumi sighed. "My friends are so obsessed with training. I'm beginning to think I'm the black sheep of the group."

"Well, you don't really like training in the first place. What's so bad about being left out of it?" Naruto asked confused.

"It's just the fact that I'm being left out. Since my friends do nothing but train it's really hard to find time to be with them," Megumi shrugged. "All of their training is boring and way too intense for me. I've tried joining in but I can't handle it."

"Maybe you should be doing your own training?" Naruto suggested. "I mean, I know you don't like it but you'll be facing off against your best friend Toshiko in the first round of the finals. A little bit of training will help." He continued stuffing his face with ramen as Megumi pondered this. She did hate training but Toshiko is a tough opponent from what she's seen so far. Reiji told Megumi how easily she subdued her opponent in the preliminary round and slumped in her chair. Maybe a little training will do her some good.


	4. Chapter 4

Back in the general store, Megumi was picking out drinks and snacks for her to use while training. "Hmmm, energy drinks? Maybe these will help," She began taking as many as she could in her arms and placed them in a bag by the counter. "I think I have enough to last a while." She began closing up the shop and headed out the door.

There wasn't too much time left in the day to train so Megumi started running to her destination. While running, she dropped one of her drinks. Stopping, she knelt down to pick up her drink only to have another fall out of her bag. This went on for a while before she finally got all of her drinks into the bag. As she got up she started to run again, only to accidentally shoulder check a young woman going the opposite direction.

"Watch it, kid!" She scoffed.

"Oh dear, I'm so sorry! I should have been looking where I was going," Megumi apologized. The young woman had her sandy hair in 4 separate ponytails and was carrying a giant fan on her back. Megumi noticed Kankuro was with her. "Um, I'm sorry, I'm in a bit of a hurry." With that, Megumi ran off.

"Isn't that the girl who keeps talking to you?" The young woman asked Kankruo.

"Yeah," Kankuro stuffed his hands in his pockets. "I see her every now and then. Kind of annoyingly cheerful when talking to me, though."

The young women, Temari, saw a colourful little wallet on the ground and picked it up. Opening it, she saw the owner's name. "Is her name Megumi Shioya?" Temari asked.

"Yeah, why?" Kankuro tried to get a look at what Temari had found.

"This is her wallet," Temari shoved the wallet into Kankuro's hands. "Go return it to her."

"Whoa, hey, why do I have to go return it? You're the one that found it!" Kankuro protested.

"You're the one that's better acquainted with her, now quit arguing with me and go find her," Temari shot him a look before Kankuro groaned and went to go find Megumi. He wasted most of his day trying to find her starting with her apartment then going around town. Still nothing. He was about to give up and leave the wallet by her apartment door until he saw Naruto walking down the street.

"Hey kid!" He called to Naruto. "You know Megumi, right?"

"Yeah, what's it to yah?" Naruto furrowed his brow.

"I'm trying to give her this," Kankuro showed Naruto the wallet in his hand.

"Hey, that's Megumi's wallet! Did you steal it?!" Naruto yelled accusingly.

"Relax, twerp, I'm just trying to give it back to her," Kankuro put the wallet back into his pocket and glared at Naruto. He hates kids and Naruto was no exception. Naruto kept glaring but eventually told Kankuro where to find Megumi. She was training by herself in the forest just outside of Konoha.

Kankuro made his way outside of the village. He walked through the forest until he found a small clearing with a pond. He saw Megumi passed out near the pond with a few empty cans around her. He walked over to her and picked up one of the cans. It was an energy drink. He smirked in amusement. She was trying to keep herself awake with energy drinks. He kicked her lightly and she groaned with discontent, merely rolling over onto her side and curling up.

"Hey, wake up," Kankuro kicked her a little harder, this time on her back. Megumi groaned even louder as she sat up and rubbed her eyes. Kankuro knelt down to her height, "Energy drinks not working for you?"

"Apparently not," Megumi yawned. She noticed something familiar in Kankuro's hand. "…My wallet?"

"You dropped it when you bumped into my sister. She told me to bring it back to you. You're welcome," Kankuro threw the wallet into Megumi's lap and got up. "Why don't you just quit being a ninja? It would be impossible to do anything of worth with your condition."

"Excuse me?" Megumi got up and glared at Kankuro. "You don't think I can do anything of worth? Did you not see me during the preliminaries? I actually succeeded, you jerk!"

"Look at you. The first time we met you were lying on the ground unable to move because a cat scared you. What do you think is going to happen when you're out on real missions? You'll only be a burden to your team if they have to fight the enemy and protect you at the same time," There was a silence after Kankuro said this. Megumi was visibly shaking, trying to hold back her emotions. If she let her emotions go she might lose control of her muscles again. "Face it. Being a ninja will only endanger everyone around you."

"Then what am I going to do with my life?" Megumi asked quietly, facing away from Kankuro. "I left my real home to have a better life and look at where it's got me. No where."

"Not my problem, ragdoll," Kankuro shrugged and started walking away.

"Hey! Don't just walk away!" Megumi ran up to him and grabbed his arm, stopping him from going any further. Megumi was immediately thrown against a tree with Kankuro's hand around her neck. "Ahk! Let's go!" Megumi struggled to break free.

"You're too weak," Kankuro tightened his grip around Megumi's neck. "I'm only telling you what everyone else is thinking." Megumi placed both hands tightly around Kankuro's outstretched arm.

"I'm…n-not…weak!" A surge of chakra flowed through Megumi's body. She kicked Kankuro away with surprising strength and did a few hand signs, causing sharp crystals to erupt from the ground. Kankuro just barely missed landing on the crystals. "Remember what I said about fighting you back at the preliminaries? Get ready!" Megumi took a couple of the crystals, turning them into swords, and began swinging them toward Kankuro. Megumi managed to get a hit in, slicing Kankuro across the chest but something strange happened. It wasn't Kankuro anymore. Megumi was now faced with a puppet. It wrapped its arms around Megumi tightly. "No..."

"You should have learned after watching me during the preliminaries," Kankuro smirked as he came out of the bandaged mass he carried. He turned to see that his puppet, Crow, was no longer holding Megumi, but a log. "Wha?"

"Don't worry, I won't make that mistake again," Kankuro heard Megumi's voice behind him. He whipped around to face her only to be pushed into one of Megumi's mirrors. Megumi didn't say anything after encasing him in the mirror. She merely hung her head and fell to her knees. Kankuro could see she was crying. "I get it now…"

"Ragdoll…" At this point Kankuro started to feel a little bad for her. He sat down inside of the mirror and exhaled loudly. "Let me out. I promise I won't fight you anymore." The mirror faded around Kankuro and he was freed. Megumi was still sobbing quietly, unable to move due to her muscles failing.

"I get it now," She repeated. "I tried my best and even with Saiken's chakra I got scared and my muscles failed me. I thought you were going to kill me…"

Kankuro rolled his eyes and pulled her into an awkward one arm hug. "Stop being such a child," He said quietly, supporting Megumi with one arm. Megumi still couldn't move, she could only rest her chin on Kankuro's shoulder.

"…Do you want to be friends?" Megumi asked after a few minutes of silence.

"What?"

"My team—my friends—are off training by themselves," Megumi started. "I don't have anyone to train or hang out with. Would you mind putting up with me for a month? I'll help you train in return and make you food. I'm pretty okay at cooking."

Kankuro pondered Megumi's offer. Sure, she was annoying, but he could use the training and free food sounds pretty nice. "Okay," Kankuro sighed, still holding onto Megumi. "But you have to work on your random napping and weird muscle thing. I don't want to be the one responsible for your mishaps, ragdoll."

"I promise," Megumi smiled. She was able to move a little now so she hugged Kankuro lightly. "It's getting late. We should go home."

"You still can't move," Kankuro got up. "Here." He connected his chakra strings to her body and controlled her movements like he does with Crow.

"Oh my god, this is weird. Stop," Megumi was moving without actually moving and it was freaking her out.

"I'm not going to carry you all the way home," Kankuro shrugged. "This way you can walk home even though you're still a ragdoll." Megumi complied. She regained control of her muscles half way home and walked the rest of the way on her own.

"Do you wanna come in and have something to eat?" Megumi offered as they stood outside of the apartment building. "It's the least I could do for you agreeing to help me train."

"Maybe later. I'm pretty beat and just want to go back to my hotel room and rest," Kankuro declined.

"Fair enough," Megumi smiled. "I'll see you tomorrow, then?"

"Sure," Kankuro smiled back for once.

A few days into training with Kankuro, Megumi could feel she was getting better at controlling her emotions. She still fell asleep every now and then during training but she started taking naps beforehand to prevent it from happening more often. Her training was mainly focused on keeping her sleeping habits in check during battle.

"Megumi, focus!" Kankuro yelled as he made Crow send kunai hurling toward her. Megumi acted quickly and created a crystal mirror in front of her. The kunai disappeared inside of the mirror. Another mirror appeared behind Kankuro and the kunai came flying out toward him. He saw the move coming and moved out of the way just in time, "Better. You're getting a lot faster."

"Good," Megumi panted. "I just wish I was better at offensive moves."

"I think you're better off with your defensive strategy," Kankuro leaned against a tree as Megumi washed her face in the nearby pond. "With those mirrors of yours you're able to send almost all attacks back at your opponent."

"Yeah, I guess so," Megumi got up and stretched. "Man, it's hot out. How are you not dying of heat stroke?" Megumi glanced at Kankuro. He was wearing an all black jumpsuit and a black hood. It made Megumi sweat just looking at it in this heat.

"I live in Suna. It's always hot there so you get used to it," Kankuro shrugged as he sat by the pond.

Megumi looked down at her own clothes. She was wearing much less clothing than Kankuro and she was still sweltering, her fishnet tube top, cargo short shorts, and light poncho were clinging to her body uncomfortably and she couldn't take it anymore. She took her tiny poncho and tube top off, leaving only her shorts and strapless bra. "What are you doing?" Kankuro's face was now a light pink. "Put your clothes back on!"

"Nah," Megumi let herself fall into the water, splashing Kankuro in the process causing some of his face paint to smudge. She giggled as she took her hair out of its usual bun, revealing long mint green hair. "You know, I've never seen you without your hood and face paint. You should show me."

"I'd rather not," Kankuro grumbled.

"Why not? Are you shy? Or maybe you have a huge scar on your face!" Megumi began listing all of the possible reasons he didn't want to show his face. "Oh! You're secretly a woman! Or maybe you're not even human at all!"

"Okay, that's enough," Kankuro sighed loudly as he began to get up. Megumi took this opportunity to grab Kankuro by the collar of his shirt and pull him into the water. By the time Kankuro resurfaced his face paint had almost been completely washed off. He glared at Megumi and began to yell, "Hey! What's your deal?" Megumi didn't answer. She was only interested in the new face she was looking at, one that wasn't hiding behind purple face paint. She slowly reached for his hood and pulled it off, gaining no negative reaction from Kankuro, and revealed short brown hair. He wasn't ugly or had any nasty scars like Megumi was imagining. He was actually rather handsome, making Megumi blush.

"You look pretty good," Megumi stated. She placed her hands on either side of Kankuro's face and gently brushed away the last bit of purple still on his face. "Why hide that?"

"Okay, you've had your fun," Kankuro grabbed Megumi's wrists to keep her from touching his face any longer. He got out of the water and proceeded to take his soaking wet clothes off so they could dry. Megumi blushed even harder once he was only in his boxers but she hid her face in the water, submersing it until the water was right under her eyes. She never knew how toned his body was, his clothes were so baggy it was hard to tell most of the time. Kankuro noticed Megumi was still looking at him even though most of her face was in the water. "Quit staring." Megumi tried to say sorry but only bubbles came up in response.

She got out of the water and sat next to Kankuro, ringing her long hair out. It would take a long time for it to dry. "I'm thinking of maybe becoming a medical ninja," Megumi said after a short period of silence. "After the chunin exams, of course. Do you think that's a good idea?"

"Hmm," Kankuro placed his thumb and index finger on his chin and pondered. "You'd never be in the front line of battle and your defensive battle style will help you from being injured…I guess it would be an alright idea but you need great chakra control and an a vast knowledge of the human body."

"I think I can handle that," Megumi gave Kankuro a thumbs up. "Want to call it a day? I wanted to go home early and do a few things."

"Can we wait for our stuff to dry off first?" Kankuro pleaded as he leaned back, lying on the grass. Megumi nodded and joined Kankuro in lying on the grass.

"We'll head back once I finish napping," Megumi smiled before drifting off. Kankuro took her lead and closed his eyes.

Once they were in Megumi's apartment, Kankuro could see bags of groceries on the table and floor. "What's the occasion?" He asked as he peeked into the bags.

"I went shopping before we started training today, I wanted to make my friends a nice dinner for all of their efforts," Megumi told him as she walked into the bathroom to hang her damp clothes. "Make yourself at home. I'll find some clothes you can wear while yours are still drying."

"I doubt your clothes will fit me," Kankuro laughed under his breath as he kept looking through the bags of food. Megumi threw a few articles of clothing at him. An extra large white t-shirt and black sweat pants.

"I usually wear those around the house or to bed because they're incredibly huge on me so I figured those might fit," Megumi got to work on the food as Kankuro got out of his damp clothes and put the dry ones on. She had a whole list of things she wanted to make for her friends. Salmon, shrimp salad, chicken with asparagus, side kiwi salad, and apple pie. She had made the pie earlier in the day so all she had to do was stick it in the oven. She began grilling the shrimp.

"Where did you learn to cook?" Kankuro asked as he got up to find out what that delicious smell was.

"When no one wants to be your friend…you find other things to occupy your time," Megumi smiled a fake smile as she remembered her time in Iwa. "I was really bad at cooking until I finally took the time to learn. Now I love it."

"You keep talking about an awful life and no friends but you seem to have an all right life and your team mates like you," Kankuro pointed out.

"Aha," Megumi forced a laugh. "I used to live in Iwagakure. I ran away from home after years of neglect. I'd rather not talk about it, though."

"Ah…need any help?" Kankuro scratched the back of his head.

"If you could cut up some kiwi that would be great," Megumi turned to him and smiled. Kankuro nodded and started cutting up the kiwi that were laid out on the counter. A couple hours passed and the food was ready. The whole apartment smelled amazing. Megumi was proud of herself for pulling off such a big meal; she hadn't done something like this in a very long time. "Thank you for your help, Kankuro."

"Don't mention it," Kankuro sat on the couch.

"Megumi?" Toshiko called as she walked into Megumi's apartment.

"Toshiko!" Megumi ran up to her and gave her a big hug. "Surprise! I made a big dinner for you and Reiji for working so hard the past week!"

"Oh, wow, Megumi. That's so thoughtful of you," Toshiko's eyes lit up as she gazed at the table of wonderful looking food. She also noticed someone sitting on the couch. "Oh, who's this?"

"That's Kankuro," Megumi laughed. Toshiko looked at him again. He didn't look anything like he did the last time she saw him but he was also wearing completely different clothes and face paint. Now he just looked like a regular guy.

Kankuro got up and walked over to the girls. "I should go. Thanks for having me, Megumi."

"Oh, wait!" Megumi ran over to the kitchen counter and picked up a bag filled with containers of food. "I knew you were just going to leave so I put some of the food I made into these containers for you to take home."

"Thanks," Kankuro smiled and took the food. "I'll see you tomorrow." Megumi closed the door behind him once he left and turned to Toshiko with a smile.

"You like him," Toshiko stated.

"Ah!" Megumi's eyes widened and she blushed deeply.

"Like who?" Reiji asked as he walked in the door.

"AH!" Megumi squeaked, waving her hands in front of her frantically. She tried changing the subject. "I made food!"

"Oh, wow! I'm starving," Reiji smiled and gave Megumi a hug. "Thanks Gumi! You're a real pal!"


	5. Chapter 5

"So, when were you going to tell me you have a crush on one of the sand ninja?" Toshiko asked, as Megumi got ready for the day.

"I don't even know if I have a crush on him for sure," Megumi sighed as she brushed her long green hair. "He almost killed me one day."

"I have a feeling you were picking a fight with him to begin with...but he's been giving you a lot of one-on-one attention lately, hasn't he?" Toshiko placed her hands on her hips.

"Well, I mean…yeah. He's gotten a lot nicer, too…" Megumi mumbled, not wanting to admit it.

"You might not have liked him then but you like him now. Face it, you've got a crush," Toshiko smiled.

"Ahhhhh! I don't know how to deal with this!" Megumi cried. "Now that you pointed it out I can't stop thinking about it! I was fine before you said anything!"

"Such a silly girl," Toshiko laughed. "Just be yourself. Pretend I never said anything and just keep training. How is your training going, by the way?"

"It's going well," Megumi smiled. "The training started slow so I could focus on keeping my emotions in check and not falling asleep. Now we're going at a much faster pace. I still hate training but it's really helping."

"Good," Toshiko crossed her arms and leaned against the doorframe. "How about I walk you to your training ground? We can catch up a little more that way." Megumi nodded with a smile.

The two girls chatted the whole way to Megumi's pond. "Did I tell you I'm thinking of becoming a medic ninja?" Megumi asked as they left the apartment.

"No, that sounds like a good plan, though," Toshiko smiled. "Is that the kind of training you're doing with Kankuro?"

"Not yet, I'm still working on my stamina and better chakra control," Megumi explained. "Kankuro says I'm getting faster, too."

"I'm glad you're getting better, Megumi. Spending your time training is a good idea since we're going up against each other in the first round of the last exam," Toshiko smiled at Megumi. They made it to Megumi's destination. "Have fun training, Megumi. Don't strain yourself, okay?" Toshiko gave a small wave before heading off for her own training.

Since Megumi was the first to arrive at the pond she decided to take the opportunity to have a nap and refresh herself before Kankuro got there. She picked her usual napping spot by the pond and closed her eyes. Kankuro showed up not long after Megumi fell asleep. He decided not to wake her up so he sat beside her and waited.

Her hair was down today; draped over her body like a blanket as she slept. Kankuro noticed the large bags under Megumi's eyes. She was always tired and always in a state of sleep deprivation. It's no wonder she had almost permanent bruises under her eyes. Megumi's eyes opened and looked up at Kankuro. "Good morning," Kankuro chuckled. "You ready to do some training?"

"What are we doing today?" Megumi yawned.

"I figured we'd focus on you today. You need to focus on your stamina a little more," Kankuro replied.

Megumi nodded and got ready for training.

* * *

Days passed and Megumi was quite proud of herself. Her stamina and ability to stay awake had increased tremendously. "I did it!" She cheered, as she stood upside-down on a tree branch. Because she was almost out of chakra her feet unstuck from the tree branch and she began to fall. "Ahhh!" Kankuro caught her before she hit the ground.

"You're hopeless," He laughed. He looked down at her and her face turned a bright red. "What's with the look?"

"Ah! Nothing," Megumi looked away quickly, blushing even more. "…I can feel your heartbeat." Kankuro didn't know how to respond to Megumi. He said nothing and kept an awkward air as he held her in his arms.

"Um…" Kankuro tried thinking of something to say. He put Megumi down and stared at her. "I don't have a witty comeback for that." Megumi smiled at him then looked down as she blushed lightly. She had been trying not to let her feelings interfere with her training but it's been getting harder and harder for her as each day passed. The two of them had grown quite close, going out for lunch together or hanging out at Megumi's apartment to watch movies after trainging. Kankuro was becoming more of a distraction than he was being a helping hand at this point.

"M-maybe we should train separately," Megumi said quietly, still looking at the ground.

"Hm?" Kankuro was confused. "Why?"

"I, uh, I just feel it's for the best," Megumi turned her back to Kankuro. "This way you can do your own training and hone your own skills."

"Is everything alright?" Kankuro placed a hand on Megumi's shoulder. The feeling of his fingers on her bare shoulder sent a chill down her spine.

"I'm fine," Her voice was strained as if to hold back tears. Kankuro could tell she was distressed and turned her around, placing his hand under her chin to keep her from looking away.

"What's wrong? Is someone putting you up to this?" Kankuro asked her firmly. "Is it Reiji?"

"N-no. I just…" Megumi kept from making eye contact with Kankuro. "I feel bad. You know, for taking away from your own training."

"Liar," Kankuro said bluntly. Megumi finally made eye contact with Kankuro. "Tell me the truth." Unable to speak at this point, Megumi blushed a deep red. Kankuro's face was so close to hers. She wanted to get away but Kankuro kept a tight grip on her. The sleepy ninja didn't know what else to do. She closed her eyes and leaned in until she felt Kankuro's lips on hers. Kankuro's eyes widened and he pushed Megumi away causing her to fall backwards and land with a small thud. He was speechless.

"I'm sorry," Megumi took his reaction as rejection and scuttled away behind a tree. Kankuro was still trying to process what happened. Megumi had kissed him.

Regaining his composure, Kankuro walked over to where Megumi was sitting behind a tree. She was hugging her knees close to her chest as Kankuro sat beside her and draped his arm over her shoulders, pulling her closer. "You're an idiot," He whispered, placing his face against the side of her head affectionately.

"I'm sorry," she repeated. "Could you maybe forget that ever happened?"

"Sure," Kankuro laughed a bit. "Or I can bug you about it for the next two weeks we have to train."

"Noooo…" Megumi cried quietly.

"Is this the reason you wanted to stop training with me?" Kankuro asked. Megumi nodded in response. Kankuro smiled to himself. He'd be lying if he said he wasn't enjoying this. "You're a strange kid. But I like you, so you're stuck training with me, ragdoll."

"You like me?" Megumi sounded hopeful.

"Whoa, slow down. I'm still getting used to you," Kankuro corrected. "But I like you enough to want to keep training with you and be around you."

"Okay," Megumi hung her head a bit.

"Don't be upset," Kankuro hugged her closer. "You should be focusing on the Chunin exam anyway. You have a lot more you wanted to learn, like medic ninja stuff."

"Yeah, you're right," Megumi smiled a bit. Kankuro got up and offered Megumi a hand. She took it. "Thanks for not hating me."

"No problem, just as long as you stop acting weird around me. Going out for lunch and watching movies alone isn't very fun," Kankuro laughed playfully.

"Gumi?" Reiji's voice could be heard in the distance. "What are you doing here...with him?" Reiji's voice got lower and much more dark when he came out of the shadows and saw Megumi with Kankuro.

"Oh, look. It's the hero here to save the princess from the bad guy," Kankuro laughed sarcastically.

"Say that again and I'll kill you," Reiji growled.

"Reiji, stop," Megumi glared at Reiji and got between the boys as a means to stop the conflict. "What's your deal?" Reiji was silent as he noticed a slight purple tint on Megumi's lips; the same purple colour as Kankuro's face paint. Megumi noticed him staring and licked her lips to remove the purple colour.

"I want to make sure you're not around the wrong crowd," Reiji replied, turning his gaze to Kankuro. "I don't trust him."

"I do," Megumi said as she continued to glare at Reiji. "In case you haven't noticed yet, I've been training with him for the past two weeks. I've gotten a lot better since then."

"What?!" Reiji exclaimed quite loudly. "Does Toshiko know?"

"Yes. She knows everything because she trusts me," Megumi crossed her arms. "Unlike you."

"I just want you to be safe, Gumi."

"I can take care of myself! I'm not a child, Reiji!" Megumi yelled.

"Fine, but you should be training with me and not Mr. plays-with-dolls over there," Reiji motioned to Kankuro.

"Say that again," Kankuro growled. With a flick of his finger Crow was behind Reiji with a poisonous blade ready to strike. Megumi's anger quickly changed to worry. She had seen how capable Kankuro is in battle and knew most of his moves after training with him for so long. He was very capable of killing Reiji and vise versa. She didn't like where the conversation was going.

"Guys, please don't fi—"

"I said you play with dolls!" Reiji yelled. That was the last straw for Kankuro. He made Crow lunge forward to stab Reiji in the back but Reiji flew up in the air, dodging the attack. "Wind Style: Wind Scythe Jutsu!" Reiji sent a large gust of wind from his wings hurling toward Kankuro, pushing him back into a tree and giving him multiple small cuts.

"Reiji stop!" Megumi called as she got caught in the jutsu herself. "Ah!"

"Hang on, Ragdoll!" Kankuro controlled Crow to the best of his ability while still caught in the jutsu. He made Crow throw a few senbon at Reiji to throw him off, stopping the jutsu and freeing Megumi and himself. "You okay?" Kankuro noticed the cuts on Megumi's body and started walking toward her.

"Don't let your guard down!" Reiji swooped down and tackled Kankuro to the ground. "Stay away from her you punk!"

"STOP!" Megumi screamed as large pink crystals erupted from the ground around the three of them. The crystals were so tightly compacted around the boys that they could barely move without getting punctured by one of them. Megumi started crying and ran off, leaving the boys alone in a forest of softly glowing crystals.

"She can still be a child sometimes," Kankuro sighed to himself. He started breaking the crystals and making a path to go after Megumi but Reiji stopped him.

"Where do you think you're going?" Reiji jumped in front of Kankuro, keeping him from going any further.

"I'm going to find Megumi. We kind of upset her. Not to mention you also hit her with your jutsu," Kankuro crossed his arms. "What's your deal with me, anyway?"

"I don't trust you! You hide your real appearance behind makeup and a hood," Reiji replied, his wings sprouting from his back again trying to act like an intimidation tactic.

"That's none of your business. Ragdoll saw my real face and she trusts me so quit your whining," Kankuro pinched the bridge of his nose and glared at Reiji. "Now, will you let me pass so I can find her? Knowing her, she might be lying in the street somewhere unable to move."

"Don't act like you know Gumi!" Reiji growled.

"Oh, please," Kankuro was getting mad. "I probably know her better than you do. You and your other friend left her alone for the past two weeks. I've been the only friend she's had since then."

Reiji was going to say something but stopped, knowing it was true. He turned away from Kankuro with a huff. "Come on, let's go find Gumi," His wings retracted and the two started walking in silence. It wasn't long before they found a mirror with a sad looking Megumi inside. "Gumi?" Megumi looked over her shoulder and saw the two boys standing just outside of the mirror. She ignored them and went back to moping. "Let me in. I'm sorry about what happened."

"No."

"We should probably leave her alone," Kankuro suggested. "Just let her whine for a while. This happened when we first started training and she got discouraged. At least we know she's safe."

"Fine," Reiji walked away from the mirror and sprouted his wings. "I still don't trust you."

"I would expect nothing less," Kankuro smirked as he placed a hand in his pocket. Reiji jumped up and flew away. Kankuro turned to Megumi, who still had her back turned, and smiled slightly. "See you tomorrow, Ragdoll."

"Yeah," Megumi whispered.


	6. Chapter 6

There was a knock on Megumi's door the next morning. She glanced at her clock and saw it was nine in the morning. She groaned and pulled the covers over her head to stifle the sound of knocking. "Ragdoll, get up!" She heard Kankuro open the door. Having forgotten about the fact that she told him where the spare key was hidden, she was a bit surprised. Now she was beginning to regret telling him. "Get up, loser." Kankuro sat beside Megumi on her bed, who was still a lump under the covers. She groaned when he started poking her.

"It's too early for training, Kankuro," Megumi grumbled, peeking out of the covers. Kankuro wasn't wearing his usual garb. He was wearing the clothes Megumi had loaned him and wasn't wearing his hood or face paint. "Who are you and what have you done with Kankuro?"

"We're not training today. We're taking a break and staying in," Kankruo placed a bag of food on Megumi's lap once she finally emerged from the covers and sat up, "I bought some fresh tomatoes for you, I figured you could use them for cooking or something," He turned to Megumi, who had started eating one of the tomatoes like an apple, and chuckled. "Or you could eat them now."

"Thanks so much, Kankuro," Megumi smiled with a mouthful of food. She swallowed her food before continuing, "Um…about yesterday, I hope this doesn't get weird now that you know I like you."

"Don't worry. I always had a sneaking suspicion," Kankuro shrugged. That was a lie. He had no idea. It was really bugging him.

"Oh, aha," Megumi scratched the back of her head. "I was pretty obvious, then, huh?"

"A little," Kankuro looked away. Another lie. He turned back to Megumi, who was quietly munching on one of the tomatoes with a blush on her face, and kissed her forehead, "It was pretty cute, though." Megumi's blush deepened. Kankuro's face was inches away. She could see him smirking and pushed him away.

"We need to set some ground rules," She grumbled with her mouth full. Kankuro was a bit confused, "Don't lead me on because you think it's funny, Kankuro."

"I, uh…" Kankuro's eyes widened. "I'm sorry." Megumi bit into the tomato again with an un-amused face. She got out of bed revealing she was only wearing an oversized T-shirt and underwear. Kankuro blushed and covered his eyes.

"Oh, grow up," Megumi walked into the bathroom and washed her face. She walked out of the bathroom while brushing her teeth to see what Kankuro was up to. He moved from her bedroom to the living room and sprawled out on the couch. She finished brushing her teeth, put her shorts on, and walked over to the couch, "Move your butt, it's my turn to pick the movie." Megumi fell onto the couch lazily and turned the tv on. Once she picked a nice lighthearted movie she placed her legs on Kankuro's lap while laying her head on the arm of the couch. Kankuro placed a hand on one of Megumi's legs and draped his other arm over the back of the couch.

"What's this movie about?"

"I dunno, something about a cloud village ninja falling in love with a merchant girl or something," Megumi shrugged, wiggling her toes out of boredom. Kankuro scoffed. "What? You don't like my choice of movie?"

"I don't do romance."

"That was very apparent yesterday," Megumi wiggled her toes in Kankuro's face. He pushed her foot away. "Okay, I'll change it." Megumi got off of the couch in search for the remote. She kept pushing her hair out of the way.

"Why do you keep your hair so long?" Kankuro asked as Megumi sat back down beside him. "Doesn't it get in the way?"

"I usually keep it in a bun, you know that," Megumi started twirling her hair. "I like my hair. It's a beautiful colour."

"It's nice, I suppose," Kankuro shrugged and took the remote from Megumi's hands. "Do you have anything to eat?"

"I was going to go shopping today. Want to come with me to the market?" Megumi got up and put her hair into a lazy braid. Kankuro sighed a little, not wanting to get up, but followed her out of the house. The marketplace was bustling with people as the duo walked down the street. Megumi began picking out different food items and putting them in a large basket she brought on the outing. "Hmm, one of these, one of those, a few of these…oh, spinach. I need more at home."

"How about no," Kankuro picked the spinach out of the basket and put it back. "Spinach is gross."

"It's healthy and delicious, grow up," Megumi huffed as she put the spinach back in her basket. "You don't have to eat it, if that makes you feel any better."

"Good because I wasn't going to," Kankuro grumbled as he slowly followed her down the street to buy more food. He started to feel uneasy about being out for so long without his makeup, he usually doesn't go outside without it. "Can we hurry this up?"

"What's the rush?" Megumi turned to him. "Is everything okay?"

"I just feel a little…bare," Kankuro scratched the back of his head, his eyes shifting.

"Oh, right. You're not wearing your makeup," Megumi looked Kankuro up and down, noticing how plain he looked without his usual suit, hood, and makeup. She smiling sweetly and paid the merchant for the food before handing Kankuro the basket, "Here. Take these back to my place and meet me back here when you're comfortable."

"Thanks, Ragdoll," Kankuro smiled slightly before walking back to Megumi's apartment.

"Gumi!" Reiji called as he passed Kankuro, not recognizing him, and ran to Megumi. "Hey, who was that guy with you?"

"Oh, uh, no one important," Megumi shrugged. "Just a friendly stranger."

"Alright. Need a hand with shopping? I feel kinda bad for what happened yesterday," Reiji stuffed his hands in his pockets as he noticed the cuts on Megumi's bare shoulders and neck. Her arms and hands were in worse shape, sporting deeper cuts and multiple areas covered in bandages.

"That would be great," Megumi smiled. They walked through the market together. Reiji noticed a small pharmacy and trotted off without Megumi noticing as she examined the fruits and veggies on display. Reiji came back and handed Megumi a little bag. "What's this?"

"It's ointment for what I did to you yesterday," Reiji replied as Megumi took the bag. "I didn't mean to hit you with it…"

"That's very nice of you, Reiji," Megumi smiled. "So, how's your training going?"

"It's going pretty great! Even though I'm not in the Chunin exams anymore I'm still training as hard as I can," Reiji smiled brightly. "You should train with me sometime. I'm sure you'd get a lot more accomplished."

"I'm perfectly happy with the pace I'm training at now," Megumi told him as she picked out some apples. "Besides, I'd only get in your way."

"You wouldn't get in my way, Gumi. It would be great to have you around! Come on, it'll be fun!"

"I think you're a little too high energy for her," Kankuro smirked as he walked over to the duo. He was wearing his usual purple makeup but he didn't bother changing into his usual clothes or hood. "Here's your basket, Ragdoll." He handed Megumi the empty basket.

"Oh, it's you," Reiji crossed his arms. "No offence but I really feel Gumi would be better with me."

"I'm not stopping you," Kankuro shrugged. "It's all up to Ragdoll."

"Thanks for throwing me under the buss," Megumi mumbled, giving Kankuro a look of distain. "I thin I'll stick with Kankuro. I'm sorry Reiji but I just feel it's best. I don't want to stop my current training routine."

"Whatever," Reiji stuffed his hands in his pockets and left in a huff. Megumi looked guilty for saying no to her friend. Reiji is good to her. He carried her around when she was sleeping and helped her out a lot in the Forest of Death a couple weeks back.

"Let's take a walk," She suggested and walked away from the marketplace, Kankuro following close behind. They stopped at a park and sat on the swings. Megumi was quiet, which make Kankuro uncomfortable. She was usually so talkative and complaining about the weather being too hot. "Am I a bad friend?" She whispered.

"Where did that come from?"

Megumi began swinging, her long hair swaying back and forth. "I rejected Reiji's offer to train together. Does that make me a bad friend?"

"Not really. He was kind of a dick to you so it's understandable why you wouldn't but it's your life. Do whatever you want with it," Kankuro shrugged, not bothering to actually swing on the swing. Megumi never said anything in response. He turned to her and saw she lost her swinging momentum, her feet dragging across the sand and her head hanging. "Ragdoll?" He reached out and stopped her swinging. He heard a light snore coming from Megumi and sighed.

"Nhhg," Megumi snorted herself awake. She looked over at Kankuro with a groggy smile. He was still holding onto her swing and Megumi noticed the cuts peppered across his arm and hand. She took out the ointment Reiji had given her and put some of it on his wounds.

"Ow! That stings, what is that?" Kankuro retracted his hand.

"Ointment for cuts and scrapes," Megumi replied, scooching closer to him and continued to cover the scrapes on his arm. "Reiji gave it to me as a way to say sorry. Now this is my way of saying sorry for having to deal with him."

"You should be using it on your own wounds."

"There's enough for both of us, now shut up and be grateful," Megumi sneered.

"Alright, alright, thank you," Kankuro chuckled under his breath.

The last two weeks of training went by quick. Megumi and Kankuro got a lot of training done and they both felt ready for the last exam. Kankuro sat down on the couch once they came back from training. Megumi joined him, placing her head in his lap. "You've been acting a bit weird these past couple days," Megumi pointed out. "Is something bothering you?"

Something was bothering him. Baki had showed up earlier to tell the sand siblings that they were going to ambush Konoha, much to his discontent. "No," He lied. "I'm just a bit nervous, I guess."

"Aww, don't be nervous. I've been training with you for a month and I've seen what you can do. You're pretty coolio," Megumi smiled up at Kankuro. "I'm getting tired." She yawned and curled up a bit before falling asleep in Kankuro's lap. He stroked her hair lightly and sighed. He couldn't tell her what was going to happen tomorrow. Kankuro grew to like Megumi. When she wasn't being upset about something she's rather happy-go-lucky and it brought a strange happiness into Kankuro's life. He never had someone he could just lounge around with. Not to mention she's a great cook. He's going to miss her.


	7. Chapter 7

The day had finally come. Megumi's battle against Toshiko.

Megumi started hyperventilating. Her turn was coming up and she was frightened. Toshiko is quite strong and told Megumi one day that she is able to utilize almost all of the strength of her tailed beast. A whole year of training couldn't prepare Megumi for the match she was about to have.

"Hey," Kankuro stopped her just before the match. "Good luck."

Megumi smiled a nervous smile. "Thank you," She whispered before jumping into the arena. Toshiko was standing on the other side waiting for the match to start. Her smile was sinister. Megumi gulped and waited for the proctor to begin the match.

"Begin!" The proctor yelled. Both Megumi and Toshiko jumped back and started doing hand signs. Toshiko was faster and did a fire style jutsu, just barely missing Megumi.

Megumi could feel her thigh had been burned a little but she ignored the pain and finished her crystal arena jutsu. Slamming her hands onto the ground, she made sharp crystals erupt from the earth, covering the whole arena. Toshiko didn't jump out of the way in time and her legs were badly wounded.

Toshiko found a spot without crystals and landed there, her legs bleeding. "I didn't expect that from you," Toshiko smiled through the pain. "I'll make sure never to underestimate you again." Megumi kept her composure, focusing on the battle and not her emotions. If she let her emotions get to her the battle would be over.

"I did a lot of my own training," Megumi got into a fighting stance. "But you knew that."

Toshiko smiled again and threw some kunai at Megumi. This didn't faze Megumi since her mirrors could redirect any ranged attack if she was quick enough. The kunai were redirected back at Toshiko, who dodged them easily. "I didn't really want to do this to you," Toshiko said while doing a few hand signs. "But I don't want to take any chances." Toshiko burst into flames. The flames grew bigger and bigger until it formed into a large Two-Tailed Monster Cat towering over Megumi.

"Eep," Megumi jumped out of the way of the Monster Cat's attacks. Onlookers were frightened at what they were watching. An extremely dangerous monster battling a tiny young girl, who didn't seem as afraid as she should be. It was hard for the monster cat to get around since the arena was still covered with sharp spikes. Megumi took this opportunity to try another jutsu on Toshiko. "Crystal release: crystal needle shower!" Crystal needles showered down onto the monster cat. Megumi thought she was doing well; winning, even.

She was wrong.

The Two-Tails whipped around and struck Megumi with its tails, sending her flying into the arena wall. The back of her head hit the wall pretty hard and she passed out.

"Ragdoll?" She heard a familiar voice. Her eyes fluttered open and she saw Kankuro kneeling down in front of her. "How are you feeling?"

"Did I win?" Megumi asked in a raspy voice. Kankuro chuckled.

"No, but you put up a good fight," Kankuro got up. "I have to go for a bit. See you later."

Toshiko came over to Megumi and smiled. "Good job," She sat down beside Megumi. "Sorry I hit you so hard."

"Yeah, turning into the Two-Tails was kind of a cheap shot," Megumi huffed. Toshiko laughed which, in turn, made Megumi laugh. Megumi stopped laughing and suddenly fell asleep.

She snorted as her head jerked up and rubber her eye. "Sorry, did I fall asleep while you were talking?" She asked, turning to Toshiko. Toshiko didn't answer; she was sound asleep next to Megumi. "H-hey, wake up. I'm the one who's supposed to be falling asleep randomly, not you." Megumi looked around and noticed everyone was falling asleep.

Suddenly the sound and sand ninja began attacking the other ninja that hadn't fallen asleep. Megumi was confused as to why she was still awake if everyone else was put to sleep. It was probably due to her inability to fall asleep on her own accord. Sleeping is hard for her on her own. She shook it off and looked around the arena. The sand siblings were escaping with an injured Gaara. Megumi followed them.

"HEY!" She yelled trying to get their attention. Kankuro recognized the voice and told his siblings to keep going while he faced Megumi. She looked hurt and distraught. "I don't understand."

"Don't make this any harder for me than it has to be," Kankuro sighed.

"I thought Suna was allied with Konoha!" Megumi yelled, ignoring Kankuro's request. "Why are you suddenly ambushing it?"

"I didn't have a choice, Ragdoll."

"I don't believe you," Megumi growled. "I trusted you!" Kankuro didn't want to deal with Megumi's drama. He jumped onto the branch Megumi was on, swiftly dodging all of her halfhearted attempts at punching him. Knowing her emotions took control, he grabbed both of her wrists and pinned her to the tree. Tears were streaming down her cheeks.

As much as he didn't want to show it, Kankuro was visibly pained for hurting Megumi. He leaned in and kissed her, "I'm sorry, Megumi" He whispered. "But I can't have you following me." At this point, Megumi couldn't keep herself up because her muscles started to fail. Kankuro backed away from her as she started sliding down and sat on the branch, unable to move. He gave her one last pained look before leaving her there.

Not long after Kankuro fled another figure appeared before Megumi, "Are you hurt?" They asked. Megumi recognized the voice as Shino Aburame. She quietly said no and Shino kept in pursuit of the sand siblings, leaving Megumi alone.

Megumi regained the ability to use her muscles again about 20 minutes later. She looked to her left to see Shukaku, the One-Tailed beast engaged in battle. She looked to her right to see both of her teammate's tailed beasts engaged in battle as well. She decided to stay where she was and re-think her life.

"I should just forget about him," She said to herself. "Devote all of my time to learning medical nin-jutsu…yeah. Who needs Kankuro? I sure don't. Love is for chumps." She hugged her knees close to her chest and wallowed in self-pity.

* * *

It had been a week since the ambush and Megumi had locked herself in her room. "Come on, Gumi! You've been cooped up in your apartment for a week now! Come out and talk to us!" Reiji kept bashing his fists on the door. He had been at it for ten minutes and not getting anywhere with his efforts and soon gave up. "Uhg. Women. I can't deal with their emotions. They like a guy; he does a bad thing, now the girl can't function. It's madness!"

"You've never been through heartbreak have you?" Toshiko huffed as she walked over to Reiji. "Megumi was hurt. She told me what happened and I understand why she's so distressed."

"Why does she tell you everything and not me?" Reiji whined.

"You don't listen," Toshiko stated bluntly.

"So what happened?" Reiji asked, completely ignoring Toshiko's statement and further resting her case.

"Kankuro returned Megumi's affections before running off," Toshiko replied as she rolled her eyes at Reiji.

"Wait, that's it?" Reiji was confused. "Why is that such a big deal?"

"Uhg, you're so oblivious," Toshiko pinched the bridge of her nose in annoyance. "She announced her affection two weeks before the last day of the chunin exam. He didn't return the affection but stayed a close friend to her. Once everything went south and she stopped trusting Kankuro during the invasion, this is when he returned her affections from two weeks prior. To a young women like Megumi, this is confusing and heartbreaking."

"I don't get it," Reiji told her. Toshiko had an anime sweat drop run down her head.

"You'll get it when you're older," Toshiko sighed heavily and started walking away.

"But I'm older than you!" Reiji yelled as he ran after Toshiko.

Megumi didn't come out of her room for another week. She wasn't just secluding herself out of sadness, she was training. Reading every book on medical nin-jutsu she could get her hands on. Keeping herself busy was the only way to keep her mind off of what happened at the chunin exams. She ran out of books so she decided to come out of her apartment to get new ones.

Once at the bookstore, Megumi immediately made a beeline for the medical books. She grabbed a couple that she hadn't read yet and went to the check out counter. At the checkout, Toshiko was waiting for Megumi. "Hey stranger," She smiled warmly. "Studying hard, I see."

"I've decided to be a medic ninja," Megumi smiled as she placed the books on the counter. "Thanks for understanding I need some space. Reiji just keeps banging on my door and it's giving me a headache."

"No problem, I told Reiji why you're secluding yourself. He doesn't get it," Toshiko shrugged as she said this.

"Of course," Megumi smiled with a sigh. "What have you been up to for the past couple weeks? More training?"

"Something like that," Toshiko nodded. "Also, Naruto is supposedly coming back with the 5th Hokage soon."

"Oh? I hope they can help me find a medic ninja to study under," Megumi hugged her newly obtained books close to her chest at the thought of having a real teacher instead of books.

Reiji found Megumi just as she was about to lock herself in her apartment for another long while. "Hey, Gumi! Finally out of your cave, I see," He smiled that toothy smile of his. Megumi smiled back for a second before entering her apartment. Reiji followed, "Hey, listen, why don't we go out for some ramen? My treat."

"Fine, but only because you're paying," Megumi sighed before turning to Reiji with a smile. They made their way to Ichiraku ramen and started eating.

"I told you that Kankuro guy was bad news," Reiji started as he broke his chopsticks apart. Megumi knew he was going to talk about Kankuro, which was half of the reason she secluded herself. She didn't want to hear him go off about how he was right and Megumi was wrong. "Never trust a guy who hides his face and uses puppets to do the work for him. That's just lazy. Not to mention he kept calling you ragdoll."

"I thought it was cute," Megumi sighed a little, remembering how much she liked it when he called her by that nickname. She used to hate it but it eventually grew on her. She never had a good nickname before.

"Don't defend him! He's the enemy," Reiji ate more of his ramen before continuing. "Nothing good ever came out of meeting that guy. You're better off with me protecting you from guys like that. I can't have my ladies being pursued by strange men."

"Your 'ladies'?" Megumi was quite offended. "Since when are Toshiko and I 'your ladies'?"

"Since we formed this little group. I have to protect the two of you," Reiji replied.

"I am not some helpless little girl you need to save, Reiji," Megumi got right in Reiji's face. "I will NOT but part of your strange hero fantasy. I can take care of myself."

"Hero fantasy?"

"Oh, and another thing," Megumi got even more in Reiji's face. "Kankuro was my friend, have you ever had someone close to you suddenly betray your trust? You have no idea what I'm going through and I suggest you quit talking about him because you're only making me feel worse." With that, Megumi walked away from the situation and started for home.

* * *

After a couple more weeks of Megumi training herself with books and picking medical herbs from outside of the village, the 5th Hokage had arrived in Konoha. Everyone was excited, cheering as loud as they could when she announced herself. Megumi remembered reading about this new Hokage, Tsunade, as one of the greatest medic ninja of their time. She couldn't wait to ask Tsunade if she could study under her.

A few days after Tsunade made herself at home as Hokage, Megumi had enough courage to ask her to be her sensei. Once she knocked on the door, she heard a muffled 'come in'. She opened the door slowly and walked into the room. "Lady Hokage," Megumi bowed. "My name is Megumi Shioya. I've heard about your skill as a medic ninja. I've been studying for a few weeks now and I would like to ask if you'd take me on as a student?"

Tsunade thought about Megumi's offer, looking her up and down as she did. "Megumi Shioya?" Tsunade repeated as she looked at her data book on Megumi. "It says here you're a jinchuriki."

"Yes ma'am," Megumi nodded. "I am able to control my tailed beast but not as well as my other team mates Reiji and Toshiko."

"Being a medical ninja requires excellent chakra control and vast medical knowledge," Tsunade told her. "Are you willing to put everything aside to learn this?"

"Yes ma'am," Megumi nodded again. "I have already begun training on my own."

"Good," Tsunade crossed her arms and sat back in her seat. "Then I will take you on as a student. You start tomorrow."

Megumi's eyes lit up, "Thank you, Lady Tsunade! I will train hard."


	8. Chapter 8

Megumi kept her promise and trained harder than she ever had in her life. She finally had a goal, something meaningful and purposeful. Though Tsunade realized Megumi's narcolepsy was going to be a problem, they managed to work around it quite well. Megumi would tape naps before long training sessions to keep from falling asleep and Tsunade would let her take little power naps in between. Tsunade even made her a small remedy that could keep her awake for hours at a time but could only use it during high stress days.

One day when Megumi walked into the Hokage's office, she found Shikamaru talking to Lady Tsunade. "Go round up any skilled genin you feel are up to the job. You have 30 minutes to leave this village," Tsunade told him. Shikamaru said nothing and turned to leave the office until he saw Megumi and stopped. He eyed her up then stopped once he saw her medic pouch.

"Megumi, you're coming with me on a mission. Right now," He told her.

"W-what? Lady Tsunade, is that alright?" Megumi turned to Lady Tsunade and she nodded in response.

"It would be wise for Shikamaru to bring you along with your knowledge of medical ninjutsu," She explained.

"But I'm still not very skilled! I've only been training under your tutelage for a short amount of time. Do you really think it's wise to bring me?" Megumi started to panic under the pressure of being the medic on Shikamaru's team.

"You'll do fine, Megumi. I trust you and so does Shikamaru. Now go!" Lady Tsunade ordered. With that, Megumi left with Shikamaru.

"Hold on. There is one person I strongly recommend you include," Tsunade smiled.

"NO WAY, YOU'VE GOT TO BE KIDDING!" Naruto yelled as Shikamaru and Megumi covered their ears. They had just finished explaining that Sasuke had left the village in search for Orochimaru.

"You just woke up and you're already this annoying?" Shikamaru grumbled.

"My ears…" Megumi whined.

"Hold on a second! I'll go get dressed!" Naruto ran back into his room. "So, besides me and Megumi, have you thought of any other top notch guys to ask?"

"A few," Shikamaru smirked. They began gathering team members, starting with Choji, then Kiba and Akamaru, and Neji.

"Are you sure you'll be able to pull off a mission like this, Megumi?" Kiba sounded concerned. "I mean, I know you've been training non-stop with Lady Hokage but it hasn't been all that long and you could fall asleep at any mo—"

"I'll be fine," Megumi cut him off with a smile; she motioned to a small pouch around her waist. "Don't worry about me. Worry about the mission." Kiba nodded.

"Alright everyone. I know some of you don't like Sasuke. I'm not very fond of him myself," Shikamaru started. "But he is also a ninja belonging to the village Hidden in the Leaves. He is a comrade! Therefore I will put my life on the line to help him. That's the way of the Leaf Village."

Everyone nodded. As they were about to leave, Sakura came. "Naruto?" She asked.

"Hm?" Naruto turned to face Sakura.

"Please Naruto…please bring Sasuke back…" She started to cry.

"Oh please," Megumi said to herself as she rolled her eyes. Kiba snickered at her remark. Megumi was touchy about anything that had to do with love since the chunin exams.

Naruto gave Sakura the thumbs up sign. "Don't you worry! I'm gonna bring Sasuke back!" Naruto smiled. The small squad left to find Sasuke right after Naruto said this.

A while later, Neji used his Byakugan to see the 4 ninja that have Sasuke. "I see them!" Neji exclaimed.

"Ok, we'll hide and then attack." Said Shikamaru. Megumi wasn't the best at being stealthy. Hell, she's as inconspicuous as neo! As they tried to hide, Megumi tried really hard not to make a sound she even stopped breathing. She made the slightest sound and blew their cover. A kunai came flying by and skimmed her shoulder.

"Ow." She tried not to scream while the others came out of hiding.

"Hey, you ok?" Kiba asked her.

"Yeah." Megumi smiled slightly.

"Then you should start breathing again." Kiba laughed. Megumi finally started breathing again.

"I'll hold them off." Said Jirobo, one of the sound ninja who took Sasuke. "Earth style barrier! Earth dome prison!" Jirobo imprisoned the retrieval squad in a rock dome.

"Don't take too long." Sakon told Jirobo as he ran off with the other 2 sound ninja, Kidomaru and Tayuya.

"This doesn't look good." Megumi mumbled to herself.

"What the hell is this?" Kiba growled.

"Let us out!" Naruto yelled.

"No way." Said Jirobo from outside of the dome. Everyone tried to break the walls but they started to grow back and everyone seemed to be losing energy…fast.

"It's sucking out our chakra," Neji stated. "If we stay in here long enough, we'll be sucked dry from our chakra."

"Well, that's not…good…" Megumi's loss of chakra caused her to feel drowsy a lot faster than usual and she began to fall. She tried reaching for her medic pouch but fell asleep before she could open it.

"Megumi!" Kiba caught her as she fell, holding her close. He placed her on the ground gently before getting up, "Tunnelling fang!" He yelled as him and Akamau tried to break the walls again.

Shikamaru didn't say or do anything, he just watched as the dome walls rebuilt themselves.

"Hey!" Shikamaru called out to Jirobo. "Why don't you just let me go instead of all 6 of us?"

"What are you doing Shikamaru!?" Naruto yelled.

"Heh, the leader of the group wants to save only himself?" Jirobo laughed. "That's rich but I'm not letting any of you out."

"What was that about?" Kiba growled. Shikamaru explained how there was a weak spot in the barrier.

"Right there," Shikamaru threw a kunai at the wall. "That's where we hit."

"Human boulder!" Choji yelled as he expanded into a giant boulder and smashed through the dome, freeing them.

"Choji, that was awesome!" Shikamaru smiled.

"I'll fight this guy." Choji growled.

"Are you sure?" Reiji asked him with concern in his voice.

"Yes."

"Don't be too long ok?"

"Alright," Choji nodded glaring at Jirobo.

As the others left, Kiba carried Megumi. He could feel her stirring after a short time. "Hey Gumi, you waking up?" He asked her.

"Yeah," She got off of Kiba's back and started running on her own.

They planned their next attack but it failed once more. Kidomaru was a little too smart for them.

"Go," Neji narrowed his eyes, wanting to fight Kidomaru. "I'll be right behind you." Naruto seemed upset about leaving his teammates behind.

"Ok, since there's only 2 ninja left and there are 4 of us, 2 of us can fight while the others get the box Sasuke's in," Shikamaru explained.

"Right." The group said in unison.

"Let's go!"

Kiba and Shikamaru distracted Tayuya and Sakon while Naruto and Megumi got the box. "Happy birthday Naruto," Megumi giggled, handing him the box. "It's a Sasuke!"

"Gee, I've always wanted one," Naruto laughed. A figure came out and snatched the box from Naruto. It was Kimimaru.

"You're all weak." He said.

"Hey! Give Sasuke back!" Naruto yelled. Sakon charged at Kiba while Kimimaru ran off with Naruto right behind him.

"Kiba!" Megumi yelled running to Kiba but ended up getting pushed off the tree along with him. Megumi grabbed Sakon's arm and pulled him down with them.

"Megumi! Kiba!" Shikamaru yelled as they started falling.

* * *

"Shit!" Megumi yelled as the ground below her was getting closer and closer. She flipped around and summoned one of her mirrors, falling into it. As she reemerged from a separate mirror, she began feeling drowsy again. Reaching into her medical pouch, Megumi pulled out a tiny epidural needle and stabbed herself in the leg with it. A surge of energy flowed through her body and the drowsiness went away. She could hear Kiba fighting Sakon not too far away. She started running toward the fight. "Don't worry, Kiba, I'm coming!"

"Oh look, another one." Said a voice behind Megumi. She turned around and saw Sakon. Ukon was the one fighting Kiba.

"Oh no," Megumi managed to say before Sakon backhanded her sending her flying into a giant rock. "Yeah…I'm going to feel that tomorrow. I gotta try staying away from his attacks. Tsunade told me to keep away from the fighting. I'm here to heal the others, not fight." She mumbled to herself as she got up. Sakon quickly ran up behind Megumi with a kunai, ready to strike.

"Megumi get out of the way!" Kiba yelled as he pushed her out of the way and took the blow for her.

"KIBA!" Megumi yelled. She crawled over to him and looked at his wound. Not only did he have a wound from the kunai just now but also a large wound on his stomach from a previous fight. "Kiba…I'm sorry."

"Don't be," Kiba smiled weakly, "But you so owe me one."

"I'll get you out of this," Megumi growled as she got up. She did a few hand signs, creating crystal armor over her body.

"Whoa." Kiba's eyes widened. Ukon finally joined Sakon in the scene.

"So, she possesses the crystal release kekkei genkai, eh?" Sakon asked.

"Let's finish her off." Ukon smirked. They ran at Megumi with great speed but as soon as they got close to her, she created crystal spikes that burst through the ground. Once they finally got close to her, they smashed most of her armor. Megumi knew she wouldn't last long and managed to distract them by encasing the twins in a large forest of crystal.

"Come on Kiba! We have to get out of here." She picked him up and ran to the forest close by. She put Kiba down and nearly collapsed on the ground.

"Megumi, are you ok?" Kiba asked her.

"Yeah, I've just used up a lot of my chakra. I'll be fine but right now I have to heal you," Megumi's hands began glowing green and she started to heal Kiba's wounds.

"Boo." Ukon was heard from behind them. They turned around with fear in their eyes. "I'll finish you!" Expecting an impact from Ukon's attack, both Kiba and Megumi closed their eyes and waited for it but it never came. They opened their eyes to see a puppet blocking the attack. "Who are you?" Sakon asked the guy not too far from the puppet.

"I'm an allay of the Leaf; a shinobi of the Sand." He replied. Megumi recognized that voice and stopped breathing. There was a lump in her throat.

"Hey! Didn't you come in a group of three?" Kiba asked him.

"The other two went ahead, 'cause you guys couldn't hack it." Kankuro replied.

"Watch it buddy, these guys aren't exactly lightweights," Kiba growled. "Behind you!"

Sakon came up from behind Kankuro and grabbed onto his head. "W-what is this?" Kankuro asked.

"Be careful! He's going to try and combined your body with his!" Kiba yelled. Just then, like at the chunin exams, Kankuro's face started to crack and sand started falling from it. It was a puppet but it was different then Crow.

"This one's…a puppet too?" Sakon asked.

"I guess that jutsu of yours doesn't work on puppets," Kankuro jumped out from the thing wrapped in bandages. "We Sand shinobi aren't pushovers like our friends from the Leaf. Oh, and standing as close as you are to my friend the Black Ant…big mistake." Kankuro's puppet got Sakon with sharp blades from its arms.

"Crystal Release: Crystal Mirrors!" Megumi yelled. A mirror appeared before Sakon and Ukon, encasing them within it.

"Ragdoll," Kankuro sighed. "I can take care of this myself. You two are too warn out to continue."

"Don't talk down to me," Megumi growled. She struggled to get up so Kankuro offered a hand but Megumi slapped it away, "I don't need your help!"

"You're still mad at me, huh?" Kankuro shrugged with a sigh. "Even after saving your life just now?"

"I'm sensing a lot of history here," Kiba pointed out.

"Quiet, Kiba," Megumi narrowed her eyes then turned back to Kankruo. "You think you can just kiss me and leave for god knows how long?"

"You kissed me first!" Kankuro retorted. Kiba raised an eyebrow in amusement.

"That was two weeks before you did! You couldn't have thought of a better time to be romantic?"

"I didn't like you back then, you kind of surprised me with your sudden affection," Kankuro crossed his arms in annoyance. "I had no idea you liked me. I needed time to process it! Shouldn't you just be happy that I like you, too?"

"Well, you picked a lousy time to show your affection," Megumi sneered.

"Uhg, shut up," Kankuro grabbed Megumi and kissed her. Megumi was shocked at first but returned the kiss, her resentment turning back into the feelings she had for him months ago. Kankuro smiled once they separated, placing his forehead against Megumi's, "I missed you."

"…You're an idiot," Megumi smiled as she hugged him. "I missed you, too." There was a shattering sound behind them.

"Look out you two!" Kiba warned them. Sakon started running for them, throwing a kunai. Megumi jumped away and closer to Sakon, ready to trap him again.

Kankuro made Crow throw a poisoned blade at him but just as it was about it hit him, he grabbed Megumi and used her as a human shield.

"Megumi!" Kankuro and Kiba yelled.


End file.
